Hustle in the Sun 15U Championship: Top Performers
All throughout the weekend at the PrepHoops Circuit Hustle in the Sun in the 15U division, there were two teams that seemed to be on a collision course – The Truth EYBL and Dream Vision. That all came to a…
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Continue ReadingAll throughout the weekend at the PrepHoops Circuit Hustle in the Sun in the 15U division, there were two teams that seemed to be on a collision course – The Truth EYBL and Dream Vision. That all came to a head on Sunday afternoon as the teams squared off in the championship game of the Platinum Bracket and the matchup between shoe circuit teams lived up to billing, as The Truth EYBL built a double-digit second half lead and held off a late Dream Vision rally to capture the title, 68-66.
“We chose to play in this event and we knew that we were going to be tested here as we get ready for the (EYBL) circuit,” said The Truth EYBL 15U head coach Jason Crowe. “Dream Vision was a great test with a great coach and great athletes and it was good for our guys to meet that challenge. We’ve got to keep building and this gives us some confidence.”
Despite the fact it was the third game of the day for both teams, the action was extremely competitive early. Dream Vision used its size advantage to its advantage as Joshua Jefferson and Jeremiah Nyarko earned buckets underneath. But The Truth EYBL countered with its outstanding guard play with Ben Scholtzberg, Mike Price, and Davion Wright leading the way into the second half. Dream Vision had one final chance but a three-point shot by Corey Yerger missed to the side.
Here’s a look at the top performers in the game.
Ben Scholtzberg (2022 Sherman Oaks Notre Dame/The Truth EYBL) – Stats: 23 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists. Scholtzberg was the engine that made The Truth run as he dug deep and played with a ton of energy that was difficult for Dream Vision to contend with. The 6-foot-2 combo guard charged hard at the hoop finishing some tough buckets or drawing the foul and also drained a couple of threes from the outside. Scholtzberg was our pick for game MVP.
Joshua Jefferson (2022 Liberty/Dream Vision) – Stats: 22 points on 11-for-16 shooting, 11 rebounds. Jefferson was absolutely unstoppable around the basket. While he did post up on a couple of occasions, he largely backed down his defender off the dribble, and then went to work using his outstanding footwork to create an opening and an easy path to the basket. The 6-foot-8 post simply has tremendous court awareness in the lane and a very soft touch on his shot.
Mike Price (2023 Heritage Christian/The Truth EYBL) – Stats: 17 points, 3 assists. Sharing the point guard duties with Scholtzberg, Price didn’t shoot as well as he did in previous games but was still tremendous at using his ultra-quick dribble at getting to the hoop and finishing or finding a teammate for an open shot. He stepped out and hit a couple of threes to keep the defense honest as well.
Jeremiah Nyarko (2022 St John Bosco/Dream Vision) – Stats 18 points on 9-for-15 shooting, 12 rebounds. Nyarko is a great run-and-jump athlete at 6-foot-8 and as he did all tournament long, he played above the rim grabbing every rebound within five feet of him on both ends. He was always available in the paint for the pass off and showed some feathery touch on his short shots if he wasn’t dunking it in.
Davion Wright (2022 Franklin/The Truth EYBL) – Stats: 16 points, 2 rebounds. Wright showed some good bounce in his step and while his outside shot wasn’t falling as it was previously in the tournament, it was clear that he could score at all three levels. Defensively, he did a good job at trying to contain Dream Vision’s guards as he clearly had the speed and athleticism to keep up with them.
Corey Yerger (2022 Sacramento Grant/Dream Vision) – Stats: 10 points on 5-for-11 shooting, 5 assists. Yerger was clearly bothered by a groin/thigh injury but tried hard to play through things. It really seemed to affect his outside shooting but he still had great explosion with his drives and finishes near the rim. Yerger was also very happy to help set up his teammates for easy scores.